Leather tire.



R. J. ELLEDGE.

LEATHER TIRB.

APPLICATION I'ILED AUG. 10, 1907. BENWED MAY 16, 1910.

llNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE..

RAYMGNID J. ELLEDGE, OF-LOS ANGEL'ES, CALIFORNIA.

LEATHER TIRE.

Svpecfication of Letters I'atent.

Application illed August 19, 1907, Serial NoV 389,300. Renewe May 1G, 1910. Serial No. 561,769.

To all who'm it may concer'n:

Be it known that I, .R-AYMoND J. ELLnnon, a citizen 'of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, 'in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, vhave invcnted a new and useful Leather Tire, of which the following is a specification.

This inventihn relates to leather tires, and the object of the invention is to improve the construction of the same7 the particular 0b-- jeots being to improve the tread portion of the tire and increase its wearing and tractivc qualities without impairing the resiliency of the tire.

The invention consists in so constructing the tread of the tire that the edge of the leather is presented to form the Wearing surface instead. of the side face of the leather.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention and referring theretoz-li`igure 1 is a side elevation of a tire partly in. section, showing one form. Fig. 2 is an enlarged crosssection on line off-wt' Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspect-ive view of one of the tread plates.

lIn the form shown in Fig. 1, the tire comprises an inner layer of leather 1, an intermediate layer of leather 2 and two outer strips 3. Strips or loops 4: are curled around cords 5 near the inner edges of the outer strips 3 to form annular welts or Shoulders, thus providing means of engagement with the rim 6 or fastening devices which may be employed in securing the tire to the rim. The layers 1, 2 and 3 and loops 11 may be secured together by sewing, riveting or lacing as at 7, ,and the inner layer 1 has a ehalnfered edge 8 which is adapted to rest against the opposite leaf of the inner layer 1 and present a smooth surface for the inner air tube 9. At the tread portion of the tire the two outer strips 3 diverge from the intermediate laycrs 2 to produce two annular flanges between which an annular groove is formed which encircles the tread portion of the tire. The annular groove thus formed is filled with pieces or plates of leather 10. These pieces may be punched with a die and each has its inner edge longer than its outer edge and concaved to correspond with the curvature of the tire, and its ends are also concavcd so as to cause its inner corncrs to project downwardl y and outwardly, und therchy give the piece such a form as to cause it to lit the annular groove in the tread. The platcs 10 are arranged transvcrsely of the tire with their .flat faecs together, and the inner con :avo edges of the piecos 10 rest upon a rcinl'oreing strip 15,

which rests upon the inlerinmliate layer 'the ouler straight edges of the places 10 forming the tread portion of the tire.

In order to hold the pieces 10 in position, two or more wires or cables 11 are passed through them circuinferentially around the tire, and to fasten the ring of leather pieccs, thus formed in the groove, bolts 12 are employed which pass trfuisversely through the ring of pieces 10 and pass through the onter edges of the outer strips 3, as clearly shown.

It will be ohscrved that the tire thus formed will have exceptiomilly finc wcaring qualities as the edge of the leathers receive the wear, and that the tractive qualilios of the tread are Superior on account of the edge wearing surface.

What I claiin is The combination of a flanged tire having an annular groove around its tread formed with a convex bottom and curvcd side walls diverging outwardly from the top to the bottom of the groove, of a series of tread pieces arranged side by side thereiu trans-- versely of the groove and. having their end and hottom edges corresponding With the side walls and botioin respectivcly of the groove, whereby said pieces are caused to fit said groove and fill the same, wires tl'lrough said pieoes circumferentially of the wheel, one near each end thercof, and bolls through said pieces transverscly of the wheel and through said flauges, 'said holts being bctween the bottom of the groovcs and said wires. 

